The frequency of culturing stools from adults with diarrhoea in Great Britain

Abstract

Utilizing the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys (OPCS) Omnibus Survey, it was possible to measure the frequency with which a stool culture was obtained following episodes of diarrhoea in adults. Interviewing over 8000 adults, over a 4-month period between October 1992 and January 1993, 633 persons (7.9%) reported one episode of diarrhoea in the previous month, and 5.4% of these individuals with diarrhoea reported that a stool had been requested for examination. No significant regional differences were observed with the sample size available. The estimate of the rate of diarrhoea in adults was just under one episode per person per year.